St. Ephrem of Syria, Deacon and Doctor of the Church: ca. 306-373 A.D.
Birth and early life
St. Ephrem (also spelled Ephraem), was born in Nisibis, Northern Mesopotamia. When he was converted to Christianity, some biographers say his pagan parents disowned him. This is not certain. But what is certain is that he was baptized at the age of eighteen, and then taken by St. Jacob, the bishop of Nisibis.
St. Ephrem was reported to have accompanied Bishop Jacob to the Council of Nicaea in 325 A.D. Upon their return, the bishop ordained Ephrem as a deacon - which was to be the last permanent diaconate in the Church until after Vatican II.
After Bishop St. Jacob's death, Ephrem served the next three succeeding bishops.
The fall of Nisibis into Persian rule
St. Ephrem stayed in Nisibis and became well known as a superb teacher in the Christian biblical school of Nisibis. But Nisibis was soon to be attacked by the Persians - not once, but three times. St. Ephrem was credited with securing the deliverance of the city by his prayer in 328 A.D. However, Nisibis was eventually awarded to the Persians in a peace settlement made in 363 A.D.
Retirement to Edessa
Fearing for their safety, St. Ephrem and the other Christians fled the city to go to Edessa in Syria. Ephrem retired to a cave on a lonely mountain, and led a very austere life. He spent much time in prayer and work. It was here in Edessa where Ephrem did much of his writing. According to the Byzantine historian Sozomen, St. Ephrem wrote more than a thousand works during his lifetime. He also eventually became well known in Edessa, which he called the "city of blessing". Preaching often to the people in the city, he spoke against the Arian heresy.
"Harp of the Holy Spirit"
St. Ephrem was among the first Christians to make sacred songs part of public worship. As one way to battle the heresies of his day, St. Ephrem took the popular melodies of his time and substituted it with words that clearly expressed Christian teaching. The themes of his songs and hymns included the superiority of the virgin state of life, faith, and the existence of the Church as the continuation of Jesus on earth. His hymns earned him the title "Harp of the Holy Spirit".
His writings
St. Ephrem wrote voluminously in Syriac on exegetical, dogmatic, and ascetical themes, drawing heavily on scriptural sources. He also wrote against the Arians and the Gnostics, and on the subject of the Last Judgment. His other writings were commentaries on the Old Testament books and an annotation on the Diatessaron, a writing about the Redemption. St. Ephrem's works were translated from Syrian into Greek, Latin and Armenian.
Famine in Edessa and death
As a deacon, St. Ephrem administered large sums of money for the Church in Edessa. In the winter of 372 A.D., a famine struck Edessa and caused suffering among the people of Syria. St. Ephrem organized a relief operation which included providing ways to carry the sick. The great work St. Ephrem exerted in the service of the people, may have caused him a great loss of strength and resistance. After he returned to his cave on the lonely mountain overlooking the city of Edessa, he died a month later in 373 A.D.
Doctor of the Church
Due to his exceptional humility, St. Ephrem is probably the least known of the Doctors of the Church. He was not declared a Doctor of the Church until the twentieth century - in 1920 A.D. - 1547 years after his death. St. Ephrem is the only Syrian honoured with the title in the Church. Along with St. Cecilia, he can be considered a patron of music. The Church celebrates his feast on June 9.
Sources of this blog post:
- Dictionary of Saints, by John J. Delaney
- A Year with the Saints, by Don Bosco Press, Inc.
- Saints for Our Time, by Ed Ransom
- The Doctors of the Church, volume one, by John F. Fink
- The Essential Writings of Christian Mysticism, by editor Bernard McGinn
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